Meyer's spread offense gets its biggest test yet when No. 6 Florida (2-0) hosts fifth-ranked Tennessee (1-0) on Saturday night, a game that usually plays a pivotal role in determining the Southeastern Conference Eastern Division champion and could set the tone for Meyer's career with the Gators.

"I think this will be a very scrutinized game," Meyer said. "I'm not naive. This is the highest-ranked opponent that we've coached against, and this is probably the best football team I've gone against."

Utah beat No. 19 Oregon 17-13 in 2003 and routed No. 19 Pittsburgh 35-7 in the 2005 Fiesta Bowl, the program's only two games against ranked opponents under Meyer.

Meyer had other meaningful victories. At Bowling Green, his Falcons beat archrival Toledo and Big 12 opponents Missouri and Kansas. At Utah, his Utes knocked off their No. 1 rival, BYU, twice in as many seasons and finished undefeated last season.

But this is different for several reasons, most notably because it's Meyer's first significant game with the Gators and because it's his first test against an SEC opponent.

This one will be argued, assessed and analyzed for days, weeks, maybe even years.

"In a football sense, this is it," Florida linebacker Todd McCullough said. "This is the game. You know how special and important this game is. This game is something you mark down every year, and you know you need to start off and get this game."

Steve Spurrier won his first big game at Florida, leading the Gators into Tuscaloosa and beating Alabama 17-13 in 1990. The Ol' Ball Coach followed with 11 consecutive bowl berths, six SEC championships and a national title.

Ron Zook's first big game came at home against Miami in 2002. The Hurricanes routed Florida 41-16. The Zooker followed with at least four losses in each of his three seasons, dropped two second-tier bowl games in embarrassing fashion, went 0-3 against schools from Mississippi and eventually got fired.

So Meyer's debut against Tennessee could be telling.

"I guess it will be real important," Vols coach Phillip Fulmer said. "Going back to my early days that was a big deal. You put your stamp on a team, on a program."

Meyer already has his stamp on the Gators with his spread offense, which starts with the quarterback in shotgun formation and incorporates the option, shovel passes, reverses, end-arounds and plenty of motion and misdirection. The running game is key, and deep passes are always a possibility.

Meyer's offense at Utah rolled up 582 yards against Texas A&M last season, then 669 yards against North Carolina. The Utes also blew out Pittsburgh in the Fiesta Bowl and ranked third in the nation in total offense.

But can it work against the SEC? Can Meyer's trendy, finesse schemes have success against Fulmer's proven plan? Can the new-school offense outplay the old-school defense?

"Everything's going to come down to this game," Florida center Mike Degory said. "This is our measuring stick. How is our offense going to do in the SEC? Where are we going to end up at the end of the season? We've had this date marked since January, so we understand the importance of this game."

The Vols have won three of the last four meetings, including the last two at Florida Field. LSU is the last team to win three in a row in Gainesville, winning there in 1978, 1980 and 1982.

No one has done it since. Not LSU. Not Tennessee. Not even Florida State.

The Gators went 68-5 at home during Spurrier's 12-year tenure, winning 30 in a row at one point and creating one of the best home-field advantages in college football. That changed under Zook, whose teams were 13-6 at The Swamp.

Florida hopes to reverse that trend.

A victory for Meyer would be a resounding statement. Not only would he extend his winning streak to 19 games dating to the end of the 2003 season, he also would become the fourth first-year coach in the league to beat Fulmer in 17 tries.

Meyer, however, insisted that this game would not be a defining moment for his career.

"I've been a head coach for five years now, and there's going to be many more moments, hopefully," he said.

But he also acknowledged the importance of beating Florida's rival. Since the SEC adopted its 12-team, two-division format in 1992, the winner of the Tennessee-Florida game has won the East nine times and advanced to the title game.

"I have not coached in this game, but I have watched this game from afar," Meyer said. "I have great respect for our opponent, but I also have great respect for the University of Florida and what this game is going to mean this early in the year."